Elizabeth Childs, a Republican candidate for the Fourth Congressional District seat, said she thinks America’s children deserve a better future than the one Washington politicians are giving them.

By Emily Cataneo, ecataneo@wickedlocal.com

The Enterprise, Brockton, MA

By Emily Cataneo, ecataneo@wickedlocal.com

Posted Nov. 29, 2011 at 12:01 AM
Updated Nov 29, 2011 at 5:24 PM

By Emily Cataneo, ecataneo@wickedlocal.com

Posted Nov. 29, 2011 at 12:01 AM
Updated Nov 29, 2011 at 5:24 PM

Needham

» Social News

Elizabeth Childs, a Republican candidate for the Fourth Congressional District seat, said she thinks America’s children deserve a better future than the one Washington politicians are giving them.

Childs, a Brookline psychiatrist, School Committee and Town Meeting member, spoke to the Needham Republican Town Committee at its monthly meeting on Monday night about three issues central to her campaign: education, the federal deficit and America’s overseas presence.

Although Childs spoke on the same day of Rep. Barney Frank’s announcement that he does not plan to seek reelection in 2012, Childs did not address Frank’s announcement during her speech, instead focusing on the tenets of her campaign.

In response to a question, Childs, currently the only declared candidate in the race, said she did not think an open field for the Democrats would change the race for her, and she would still address the same issues and use the same strategies.

“This race for me was never about Barney Frank or Elizabeth Childs. It’s about the future of our country,” said Childs. She added that she believes partisan “finger-pointing and demonizing” from both Republicans and Democrats does nothing to solve the country’s problems.

Childs, who was Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health under Gov. Mitt Romney, said she would build her campaign on three issues. First, she said she thinks providing quality public education to every American child would solve many of the country’s problems. Second, she said she wants to solve the federal deficit problem through a combination of comprehensive tax reform and reforming Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid so they are effective for people who need them without “breaking the budget.” Finally, in terms of military spending and involvement, she said the government should support its allies, stand up to its enemies and recognize that the military needs resources without giving the Pentagon complete free rein.

Childs stressed the importance of addressing the deficit across the board, not just in defense spending.

“Representative Frank was saying that if we took the money out of defense, we wouldn’t have to do anything else. That’s not true,” said Childs, referencing Frank’s recent push to encourage Congress to limit military spending.

When asked about a redistricting plan that moved Needham to the Fourth Congressional District, Childs said she is “thrilled” to welcome the town to the district.

“I feel comfortable and at home here,” she said. “This is a place that I could imagine [myself and my family] living.”

Childs, an avid camper who has driven her Airstream trailer to the Arctic Circle with her family, said she will spend the summer of 2012 engaged in a “mobile campaign,” where she and her family will travel around the district living out of her trailer and drumming up support for her candidacy.